IL AG wants a public list of gun owners

| March 3, 2011

It looks like a battle is heating up in Illinois about whether the State’s registered gun owners should be considered public information. The Illinois attorney general is trying to force the state police to give up the information according to Fox News;

Critics questioned what public interest it would serve to let neighbors look up each other’s potential weapons cache — further, they warned that publicizing the information could put both gun owners and those who don’t own guns at risk.

If the state publishes a list of gun owners, Republican Rep. Ron Stephens said, “You are by design also publishing a list of everyone who doesn’t” carry a firearm.

That could be comparable to publishing a list of everyone who has, or doesn’t have, a car alarm or home-security system, at least in the eyes of those who want to keep the records private.

So actually, the AG wants a list of potential crime victims. That sure would make it easier for burglars and home invaders. Instead of wasting their time observing homeowners, criminals can just get a FOIA and plot out their crimes in the comfort of their own homes.

Category: Gun Grabbing Fascists, Guns

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Annoying Mike

Actually, the FOID (Firearm Owner’s Identification Card) is a registration of people, not guns. You have to have a FOID to buy a weapon or ammunition. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you own a gun, as some people get the FOID and then decide not to buy one. So this is acually worse. The AP, with the blessing of the State, wants a list of POTENTIAL gun owners.

DaveO

On the flip side, Oklahoma is beginning the debate on open-carry.

Bob Izzaninja

In the good news department, my state (Utah) is debating a bill that would allow for concealed carry for any citizen who can legally buy a firearm. No CCW required!

NHSparky

I know a few state reps in NH (hell, everyone here gets to BE a state rep eventually) and a no-restriction CCW sounds like it might work here. Hell, if they have no restriction-CCW in VERMONT, of all places…

And just one more reason to never, EVER, want to move to IL.

Jacobite

And Arizona has recently passed a bill allowing concealed carry for any citizen who can legally purchase a firearm. 😀

Stonewall116

The nice part about this is that the Illinois State Police (ISP) are resisting the order to make the list public. There are several bills working their way through the state house to prevent the list from becoming public and the ISP is exploring the option of requesting a binding agreement from a court in order to force the ISP to do this. A great delaying tactic on the part of the ISP to give time for the bills to make their way through the state house.

Of course, my big question is why did the AP request this list in the first place? Was it for a story or was it to stir the pot in Illinois? If I didn’t have so much invested in this state (Family, farm, school), I’d bail for greener pastures. Kind of hard, though, when taking care of your mom and grandmother at the same time.

Bob Izzaninja

Jacobite,

I heard about the AZ law. That is good news. I think that is the same bill that the UT state legislature is copying here.

PintoNag

I wish I believed that the AP request was a limited thing, but here is the kicker: the news media has just done an end run around every law we have about a federal gun registration list. The feds can’t do it, but if this passes in IL, all the media has to do is go state to state and get a list of gun holders. You see? Voila! Federal gun registration at its finest.
How much you want to bet Soros is behind this somewhere? Or one of his think-tanks?

Old Trooper

Not only will this list tell the criminals who isn’t armed, but who is, if they need new firearms for their criminal activities all they will have to do is get on the computer and make a shopping list.

Stonewall116

Luckily, we can still sell them between private parties without having to do background checks. So they’ll never really know what they might meet if they try to “visit”.

Rule #1 of firearms in Illinois-Always buy a gun from a private seller that the government doesn’t know about…

LL

I got this link from my coworker. I work in IL. If you live here, sign the petition!!

Doc Bailey

I got one, how about a public list of everyone infected with HIV/AIDS, and better yet a MedicAlert bracelet being mandatory. We could extend this law to HPV, and Hep B/C as well.

proud american

1. It’s an invasion of privacy to require the FOID..

2. It’s violation of 2nd Amendment rights
to prevent a legal citizen the right to bear arms

3. THE STATE OF IL..AG.. should be recalled for
malfeasence and endangering the citizens of the state.

proud american

no no no you got this all wrong..

THIS WAY WHEN THE
commie in the white house slams down marshall law
it
will
be easier for the marxists to
come and kill you and your family
and then take your guns.

AndyN

A local news outlet in one of the southern states filed an FOIA request for all concealed carry permit holders in the city they covered, then published the list when it was granted. The week following the publication of the list they published a letter to the editor from a woman thanking them for compelling her to uproot her entire life and develop a new identity because they had given her violent, restraining order ignoring ex-husband all the information he needed to find her again.

There are countless reasons why this is a horrible idea. I can’t think of a single constitutionally valid one why it’s a good idea.

Doc Bailey – I think it was William F. Buckley who suggested that either all homosexuals or all AIDS carriers have “abandon all hope ye who enter” tattooed on their backsides.

proud american – Turkey, USSR, Nazi Germany, China, etc, etc… lots of historical precedent for your argument.

PintoNag

I have become very concerned that 2012 may be too far away.

Old Trooper

Proud American; they won’t kill you and your family, but they will take your guns. How else will they be able to control the population?

Old Trooper

If anyone thinks they won’t/can’t come and take your guns; did you forget New Orleans after Katrina? Law abiding citizens had their guns confiscated by the police, who were going door to door, and they were then left defenseless against the roving criminals, who did have weapons.

malclave

That could be comparable to publishing a list of everyone who has, or doesn’t have, a car alarm or home-security system

Or looking at it another way, it’s comparable to publishing a list of everyone who works for the media. Or for an abortion clinic.

B Woodman

This is the first step.
#2 – mandatory registration. After all, the Gubbment already knows who has what and where.
#3 – Confiscation

USMC Steve

More likely what this slimy little fuck wants is a list with which he can send agents/police to confiscate privately owned firearms.

Old Trooper

Well, Steve, that is probably closer to the truth. Buy weapons from private party sales if/when you can. That’s what I plan to do, when I can, from now on.